Tomsk

Tomsk State UniversityThe fountain in Novosobornaya squareDedication to the students of Tomsk

Photo:http://www2.admin.tomsk.ru/

Tomsk is a city in Russia, the administrative center of Tomsk region and district.

Tomsk is mainly situated on the right bank of the river Tom, at a distance of 50 km from its confluence into the Ob, at a distance of 3,5 thousand km from Moscow.

The city of Tomsk, as well as the whole of Tomsk region, is in the time zone designated by the international standard as Omsk Time Zone (OMST/OMSST). Displacement concerning UTC makes +6:00 (OMST, winter time) and +7:00 (OMSST, summertime) as in this time zone transfer to summertime is in force. Concerning Moscow time the time zone has constant displacement +2 hours and is designated in Russia correspondingly as MSK+3.

Tomsk is an important scientific and educational center of Russia. In the city there are a lot of science intensive businesses, IT-industry is high developed.

The informal name of the city - "Siberian Athens" - is widespread. It appeared at the end of the XIX century after opening there the first in Siberia university: Imperial Tomsk Universitywas founded in 1878. In 1896 the first in Siberia higher technical educational institution - Technological Institute (now Tomsk Polytechnic University) was founded.

A lot of outstanding people studied in Tomsk higher educational institution. The founder of Russian economic geography Nikolay Baransky, the surgeon, academician and the first president of Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR Nikolay Burdenko; the creators of the Soviet helicopters "Ka" and "Mi" Nikolay Kamov and Michael Mil; the geologist, the first president of the Academy of sciences of Kazakhstan, the discoverer of the Dzhezkazgan ore deposit Kanysh Satpayev; the Olympic champion in cross-country skiing Lyubov Egorova are among them.